A gift, a gamble and a promise
by valexander25
Summary: A series of three events would forever change the life of Naruto, Konoha and the elemental nations.
1. Chapter 1: The Legend

This is the beginning of my new story.

It will be shorter chapter wise but hopefully just as enjoyable as Tenderhands!

XXX

_**Prologue**_

"Don't stop setting traps" Sarutobi shouted

"We have to hold it off until the fourth arrives" another unnamed shinobi said as the brave men and women of Konoha launched themselves fearlessly at the enraged Kyubi no Yoko.

They had not a shred of hope at defeating the beast, yet the fought on bravely, willingly, throwing their lives at the beast—just to bide enough time for their Kage to arrive.

The beast was preparing another Biju-dama; the first having already been disposed of by the Yondaime before he was dragged into battle with a strange masked ninja.

Totally helpless, there was nothing the Sandaime could do. He was in the direct path of the blast and he as well as the men and women defending the village would feel the full and fearsome power of the unimaginably destructive attack. However, before the beast could let loose its giant ball of destruction Gamabunta landed atop it.

The Yondaime had arrived!

"It's the Yonadaime!" All the shinobi present cheered as their leader appeared in the nick of time.

"Hold the beast down for a while Gamabunta" The fourth said atop the large toad's head.

"Minato-kun, I may be big but I'm not a miracle worker you know!" Gamabunta replied in his usual gruff self.

"I just need enough chakra to take him away from the village"

"Ok, ok!" the large toad said and before long the Kyubi along with Minato was gone and in the distance.

A large explosion lit up the sky; he had successfully deflected the great beast's attack for a second time!

**At an unknown location away from the village…**

"I have to put up a barrier quickly!" Minato said.

"My chakra is almost drained Minato-kun!" Kushina said in visible agony.

Just then a newly born Naruto began to cry.

"I'm sorry Naruto-kun I didn't mean to wake you." Kushina said in a soothing voice to her newly born son.

When the baby heard his mother's voice he began to smile; his very first smile. That smile brought both joy and anger to the Minato's heart. The young Kage knew what needed to be done, and he knew that he would die in the process.

He was brought out of his musing by his wife's voice. "Minato-kun, I am going to drag the beast back into me and die with it inside me. At least that way I could protect my two precious loves as well as the village!"

"Thank you for everything my love, and thank you Naruto for being my son!" the woman said with genuine happiness.

"Kushina no! You made me your husband, you made me a father and you made me Hokage!" Minato said.

The usually stoic and unflappable man was overcome with emotion as his wife was about to give her life to save him, his son and their village.

"Minato I am happy. I am happy that I met you; I am happy that I married you; I am happy that you are the father of my child; and I am happy that it's our child's birthday!"

"When I imagine the three of us surviving and living together, that image only brings happiness to me. I am filled with love and joy with the thoughts of the three of us! The only regret is that I won't see Naruto grow up!"

"Kushina! You don't need to take the fox down with you. I can use our last bit of chakra to see Naruto one last time."

"What?" Kushina asked quizzically.

"I will seal the last of your chakra in Naruto with the eight trigrams seal and then I'll seal the beast with the dead demon seal"

As soon as Minato finished his statement Kushina blurted out "But that means that you will…"

"I will most definitely die, but I will also be able to permanently seal half of the fox's power in the belly of the death god and the other half I will seal in Naruto" Minato explained.

"No, no, no!" Kushina pleaded with her husband.

"I can't let the nine tails be revived without a jinchuriki. That would destroy the balance of the tailed beasts and it would only lead to another world war. Also, a time will come when Naruto will need to gain control of the fox's power and he will need our guidance."

Minato continued. "I know what you want to say, but Jiraiya sensei spoke of a great revolution in the ninja world and along with it a great disaster. I've confirmed two things tonight my love. One, that masked man is the harbinger of that disaster and two, Naruto-kun would be the man to stop him!"

"I know it!" The fourth Hokage said with conviction as he began to weave the hand signs for the dead demon seal.

"But…I don't want our son growing up knowing nothing but hate and fear!" Kushina said as the reality of the situation began to sink into her. Naruto would be all alone while he bore the most heavy and cruel burden.

"I wanted you to be there for him; I wanted you to raise him and train him! Why are you sacrificing yourself for the village, the country and me?"

"Why Minato? Why?" the distraught woman said unable to stop the river of tears from flowing from her eyes

To which Minato replied. "Turning one's back on the village is the same as abandoning a child. You know the pain of losing a village and your loved ones." Minato's voice became even more forceful than before.

"In the end, we are a family—of shinobi"

"And besides, you're much better at these things than I am. I'd be totally lost without you honey." his countenance completely changed, and his trademark goofy grin made the woman smile. He grin was irresistible.

_**Outside the barrier…**_

The Sandaime watched on helplessly as his successor used a forbidden jutsu.

"Third what's happening" a newly arrived ANBU asked

"They've set up a barrier; no one can get in or get out. Whatever they're doing; they're doing it alone" Sandaime responded.

_**Back inside the barrier…**_

"_Curse you Fourth Hokage!"_ the Kyubi roared in its mind as the hand of the death god reached through the heroic Kage and ripped out its soul.

"Seal!" The fourth commanded and half of the great Kyubi's chakra was sealed in the Yondaime's body.

"_What a heavy chakra, my body's gone numb! Now time it's time to seal the rest of the beast's chakra in Naruto." _Minato thought.

"_Shit! That damn blonde insect is about to seal me in that new born child!_ _I have to do something before it's too late!" _Kyubi thought.

Just as the beast finished its thought, the chains of Kushina weakened enough for the beast to use its large paws. Its target was Naruto!

But the claw of the great beast never made it to its intended target because it was stopped by the parents who refused to let their son die.

"You win Minato. It's the first argument that you ever won!" Kushina said while coughing up blood.

"Thank you darling! It seems that we both won't be around to see Naruto grow up." the fourth said in a down trodden voice. He then stretched out his hand and called forth Gamatora.

The long scroll looking frog yelped. "Fourth, nine tails? What the hell is going on here?" the small frog said in utter surprise.

"No time to explain Gamatora. I am entrusting the key to the seal to you; take it to Jiraiya sensei" the fourth commanded.

"Okay and goodbye Minato-kun!" Gamatora said in a sullen voice and disappeared.

"Minato is going to make his son the jinchuriki of the Kyubi in order to save the village! What a sacrifice!" Sandaime said.

"It's time to go dear we don't have much time left before seal the rest of the fox's chakra in Naruto as well as some of my own. If you have anything to say now is the time to say my dear."

With blood flowing out her mouth Kushina began her last words to her son.

"Naruto…don't be a fussy eater, eat a lot and grow to be a big boy; take a bath everyday and get enough rest; make friends, real friends who you can trust; study your ninjutsu and don't give your academy teachers too much trouble! Remember the three vices of shinobi: don't borrow money if you can help it, save some of the money from your missions, and no drinking until you're twenty one and don't overdo it. Find a nice girl, not a weird one and make sure she's like your mother."

Minato interjected "And the fourth warning. Watch out for Jiraiya sensei!"

Kushina chuckled and continued "Naruto-kun you're going to experience a lot of pain and suffering, but find a goal and stick with it and don't give up until you've achieved it! Remember who you are! You are my beautiful son and I love you Uzumaki Naruto, forever and always!"

She then gave the conversation over to her husband "Sorry I took all you time Minato-kun"

"It's okay sweet heart." the fourth said to his beloved wife.

He then directed his attention to his son. "Naruto, this is your dad speaking—listen to your motor mouth mother!" he said with a bloody smile. "And always remember I love you Uzumaki Naruto, forever and always!"

Then they both said together with all the love they had in their hearts "We love you Uzumaki Naruto! Forever and always"

As the life began to fade from their bodies, sadness began to descend upon their hearts. Sadness at not being able to see their son grow up and be strong, or get married and have children. They were sad that they won't be there to see him crawl or walk or run; they won't be able to carry him to his first day of the academy or his last. They were sad because they were leaving their only son.

But then something happened that literally stopped time for the dying parents. Their child opened his bright blue eyes and looked directly at them for the first time and he smiled. His little hands reached up and towards his parents.

Minato and Kushina couldn't believe it, but they were overjoyed. They both reached with all their might to touch their son one last time. The pain of the sharp claw of the Kyubi searing through their bodies as they moved couldn't stop the new parents from reaching their son.

In what seemed like an eternity the four hands of the family met for one last time.

The child's grip on his parents' fingers was strong as if to say "Don't worry mom and dad, I'll be okay and I'll make you proud!"

With heart filled with joy Minato said "Eight Tiagrams Seal!"

"We love you Naruto, forever and always!" they said one last time—and then they were dead.

After the sealing the new born baby began to cry—his wails piercing through the still of the night.

After the sealing a whole village began to cry—its wails flowed through the elemental nations.

…

On that night a legend died…On that night another legend was born…

XXX

Please read and review!


	2. Chapter 2: A gift, a gamble a promise

**A gift, a gamble and a promise**

Iruka was lying on his bed deep in thought about his student Naruto. The boy failed the genin exam for the third time in a row today and the academy teacher was feeling really bad. However, he was the chunin instructor and so he had to be fair to the other students. He didn't know what to do about the boy, he really was at loss. As he reminisced about his not too pleasant day Sandaime's words came back to him as the pair were walking through the village.

…

"I understand how you feel Iruka, but Naruto is just like you. He too knows the deep pain of loneliness. He has never known a parent's love and is hated by all the villagers. He starves for attention and love, and that is why he gives so much trouble. I am positive that if young Naruto is given the gift of acknowledgement, he can become one the greatest shinobi that this village and the elemental nations have ever seen." the wise old Kage said.

The Sandaime's words were rooted to his mind. Naruto and great were two words that Iruka wouldn't associate together. The boy was clumsy, inattentive, had poor chakra control, misbehaved far too much and hardly showed up to class. Despite all the boy's faults, the boy was also hard-working and really believed that he would one day become Hokage.

However, Iruka was forced out of his thoughts by the loud banging at his door so late at night. "Who the hell is at my door at this hour?" the chunin said as he rushed to see who it was that disturbed him so rudely. He opened his door only to see his fellow academy teacher Mizuki

"What is it Mizuki? What's wrong?" Iruka asked.

"It's…it's Naruto…he stole the forbidden scroll from the from the Hokage's mansion as a prank!" Mizuki said with worry evident in his voice.

"WHAT! Are you sure!" Iruka said in shock.

"Yes! Come on the whole village is looking for the boy" Mizuki said as he disappeared from view.

"Ok!" Iruka said as he went to put on his gear

"_Hehehe, I'll rile up the shinobi some more and make it into a blood hunt. That way, when I kill the kyubi brat and escape with the scroll, no one will care!"_ Mizuki thought as he went about his scheme to get the forbidden scroll.

**Meanwhile...**

Iruka and the rest of the Konoha shinobi were busy looking for Naruto and the forbidden scroll.

"_I should look in the woods nearby, he should be there."_ Iruka thought as he tried to recall all of the boy's favorite hiding places in the village.

As luck would have it Iruka was able to find a bruised and dirty Naruto sitting on the ground panting heavily from exhaustion. It looked as if he was training the entire time.

"Hehehe…you found me Iruka sensei!" Naruto said with a voice full of pride.

"Naruto! The entire village is looking for you. Why did you steal to forbidden scroll of sealing?"

"Huh?" Naruto asked, totally clueless about what was happening.

"Mizuki sensei told about the scroll and this place as well. He said it was a great place to train at night. I was only able to learn one jutsu though, but I'm sure I will be able to pass the graduation test this time sensei."

"You were able to learn a jutsu from the scroll?" Iruka said with surprise evident in his voice.

"Naruto! That scroll is filled with forbidden jutsu! Anyone of those jutsu could easily kill a jonin if they're not careful!"

"Huh! I looked through the entire scroll and the jutsu didn't seem all that bad or hard to use, except a few nasty ones in there. I just started with the first one because it would help me pass the graduation test at last!" the boy said with a nonchalance that had Iruka flabbergasted.

"_He is saying that forbidden S-ranked jutsu are easy? Was I wrong or is it just his bravado?"_ Iruka thought to himself.

Iruka could see clearly that the boy really was innocently following the chunin instructor's orders which meant that he was tricked by Mizuki.

"_Damn! What the hell is going on here?"_ Iruka thought.

However, before the chunin could utter any more words he was attacked by a hail of kunai.

"Thanks Kyubi brat for spilling a whole bunch of information on me you stupid idiot!" Mizuki said.

"_Kyubi?"_ Naruto thought.

"Oh, I see what you are up to Mizuki you traitor!" Iruka snarled.

"Naruto! No matter what, don't give Mizuki that scroll! Mizuki tricked you to steal it so he can have it himself!"

"Hehehe Naruto, there's a reason that you have that scroll." Mizuki said.

"Huh?" Naruto said in total confusion.

"Don't Mizuki don't do it! It's against the Sandaime's law!"

"Like I care!" Mizuki said to Iruka.

"You Naruto…you are the demon fox that nearly destroyed the village twelve years ago. You are the one who killed the Yondaime Hokage, the man who you so admired! You killed Iruka's parents and many shinobi of the village! That is why no one will ever love you! You will be alone for the rest of your pitiful life you demon!"

Mizuki's cruel words put the young child in a trance like state. The words of the villagers came flooding back to him. _"Demon, monster, killer, you are no good, go die, you killed the Yondaime, get away from here you filthy demon, go away brat, stupid brat, come here let me hit you." _However, through the haze of torments and insults two voices entered Naruto's mind.

"**I love you Naruto"** a strong man's voice said.

"**I love you Naruto"** a gentle woman's voice said.

"**We love love you Naruto, forever and always" **the voices said together.

"Huh! Who is this? Who's there?" the boy said as he looked around trying to ascertain where those two voices came from.

"Hahaha the brat is going crazy." Mizuki said.

"STOP IT MIZUKI!" Iruka shouted. However, the traitorous chunin was about to put the final nail in the coffin.

"NOW DIE!" Mizuki said while hurling his fuma shuriken at the hapless child. However, the weapon never met its mark as Iruka used his body as a shield to defend the dazed boy.

The sound of metal ripping through cloth and flesh reverberated through the now silent forest.

"Why…why did you save me, the demon that killed your parents?" Naruto asked totally stunned.

With tears in his eyes Iruka said. "My parents…after they died I had no one to compliment or acknowledge me so I always acted like an idiot just to get other people's attention. I wasn't good at much, so I kept on acting like a fool because it was better than being a no-body. After class every evening, I would look at my classmates as they headed home with their parents with all smiles telling them about their day. But I…I was totally alone. It was so painful!"

His life was beginning to fade—the shuriken pierced Iruka's heart. "Naruto, you must have been in so much pain! If I had done a better job, you would not have to feel like this! I am sorry Naruto…I am so sorry for not being there for you!"

"No Iruka sensei! Don't be sorry, you were always fair and bought me ramen. I gave you too much trouble. I am sorry Iruka sensei, for being such a bad student. If I didn't steal the scroll this would never have happened." Naruto responded.

"Do worry about that Naruto and don't blame yourself. I would gladly give my life for my precious students. I wouldn't say it out loud, but of all my students you were my favorite." The man responded.

Those words really surprised Naruto. In his dying moments, Iruka remembered the Sandaime's words.

"_**I am positive that if young Naruto is given the gift of acknowledgement, he can become one of the greatest shinobi that this village and the elemental nations have ever seen."**_

With his wise Kage's words in heart Iruka decided to give Naruto his final gift. "Do you know Naruto that people of Konoha have a strong sense of protection?"

"What?" Naruto asked.

"All Konoha's shinobi have a will of fire, and you Naruto also have that will…probably the strongest of all of Konoha's shinobi."

"The will to never give up!"

"You never gave up. No matter how many times you failed, you never gave up. You have fully inherited Konoha's will of fire!"

With his last bit of strength Iruka took off his leaf hitate with his bloodied hands and said while handing it to a stunned Naruto.

"You are not the demon fox! You are Uzumaki Naruto of the hidden leaf village! You are the greatest Hokage to have ever been produced by Konoha!" As he handed his hitate to young Naruto, his last bit of life left him. Iruka's body fell limply to Naruto's side.

He died with a smile on his face, passing on the will of fire to the next generation. As a shinobi, he could not have a more noble death.

Naruto lay there trembling, while he looked at the body of his dead sensei. He couldn't believe it—Iruka sensei was dead.

"Hohoho! What touching finale for Iruka, I couldn't do it better myself" Mizuki mocked. "This is so perfect! I take the scroll you get the blame for killing Iruka! Perfect!"

When Naruto heard Mizuki's foul voice he became instantly angry.

"So the demon fox is angry that I killed his stupid master?" Mizuki taunted.

"I'll kill you!" Naruto said with no emotion in his voice.

"You…kill me?" Hahaha! That has to be the best joke I heard all year!"

Taking out a single kunai, Naruto crossed his fingers and began to mold a massive amount of chakra. So much that the searching shinobi could easily track the source it was coming from.

"Tajuu kage bunshin no jutsu!" Naruto said in a cold tone while filling the forest with hundreds of shadow clones.

Mizuki was at a total loss for words. "What…what the hell is going on here?"

"What going on?" Naruto asked. "Your death!That's what's going on!" Naruto said in a voice filled with anger as his clones crashed down on the poor Mizuki. When the clones were done, Mizuki's body was unrecognizable.

Having killed the traitorous Mizuki, Naruto slowly made his way to his fallen sensei. "IRUKA SENSEI!" the boy screamed out into the night air.

The Sandaime and the rest of the Konoha shinobi were hurrying to the site of the incident when the heard the young boy's scream. They all came upon the tearful sight of a dead Iruka cradled in a young Uzumaki Naruto's arms and the disfigured body of Mizuki nearby. Their anger was replaced by sadness by the chilling voice of Naruto repeatedly saying.

"Iruka sensei, please come back! I'll come to class every day and do my homework. I won't play anymore pranks on the villagers. Please Iruka sensei, please come back…please come back!" the boy sobbed.

Only the Sandaime dared move in such a poignant moment. None of the village shinobi had ever seen the boy in such a state before.

As the elderly shinobi placed his hands on the boys shoulder the boy reacted immediately.

"No! Leave me alone! I am going to kill that traitor Mizuki! Where is he? Where is the traitor Mizuki? I'll kill him, for killing Iruka sensei! It's all my fault! It's all my fault! IRUKA SENSEI! I am sorry Iruka sensei!"

Everyone was stunned at the incoherent information that was coming out of the traumatized boy.

With a grandfatherly composure, the Sandaime swept the young Naruto into his arms. "It's okay Naruto-kun, its ok! Everything will be alright!"

"Jiji! Iruka sensei…Iruka sensei saved me from the traitor. Mizuki wanted to steal the forbidden scroll so he tricked me into stealing it for him. I killed Mizuki. I killed the traitorous bastard who took my sensei's life! I am sorry jiji. I am so sorry!

The sad child's voice echoed in the still night air of the village.

"I'm sorry Jiji!"

…

News quickly spread throughout the village that the chunin Umino Iruka was dead and thanks to Mizuki's lies, the blame was placed squarely on Naruto's shoulders.

They didn't care that Mizuki was a traitor of the highest order, or that he lied to Naruto to get him to steal the forbidden scroll. All they cared about was that yet again, the kyubi brat was up to another prank and it went way too far this time.

**At Naruto's apartment…**

Naruto couldn't sleep, he dared not sleep. He was hoping that all of this was just one big joke on him that Iruka would somehow appear before him. He was confused at all the information that he received that night—both Mizuki's and Iruka's

"Iruka sensei!" the boy said as fresh tears began to run down his face.

A day had gone by and Naruto still did not leave his apartment. He did not eat, neither did he sleep. The neighbors were particularly belligerent, smashing bottles and rocks at his door way and painting very insulting graffiti on his apartment walls. However, none of that mattered to Naruto. He didn't care one bit. Nothing mattered to Naruto now, because the one person who acknowledged him was dead. He was all alone and this time it was all his fault.

However a strong knock on his door broke Naruto out of his depressing thoughts."Uzumaki Naruto, the Sandaime requests your presence. I am here to escort you to his office."

"Oh ok, shinobi san." the boy said. "I'll be out in about fifteen minutes." the boy replied.

Fifteen minutes later Naruto was making his way to the Hokage tower under the protection of one of the Hokage's Anbu. Emotions were very high in the village at the moment and Sarutobi didn't want to take risk of having Naruto report to the tower by himself to prevent potential attacks on the boy by the villagers. Kami knows that the kid had been through enough.

"You may enter." the shinobi said before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

"How are you going Naruto-kun?" The Hokage asked in a soft tone.

"I am at fault for everything. No matter what you say, I was the cause of Iruka sensei's death and I don't know what to do, or how to move forward. Iruka-sensei cared about me and gave his life for me. He was the only person besides you who gave me any kind of attention. He acknowledged me as Uzumaki Naruto and not the demon fox, a Hokage of Konoha. He told me about Konoha's will of fire and that I carried it within me the strongest—the will to never give up."

The Sandaime smiled as the boy spoke. He was proud of Iruka. "Iruka gave you an important gift." Sarutobi said.

"Iruka could not have died a better death. He died protecting his precious student, while passing on the will of fire. You trusted Mizuki as any student would trust his sensei. He used your deep desire for attention and acknowledgment to trick you into doing something wrong. If a student cannot trust their sensei then what hope would there be for the village?" the Sandaime asked.

Naruto felt a little better at the Sandaime's words. "But jiji, Mizuki said I was the demon fox that attacked the village twelve year ago, but then Iruka-sensei said that I wasn't. I am confused" the boy said.

The third felt his heart contract in pain as he heard those words. _"Damn that Mizuki if he wasn't already dead I would kill him myself." _

The Hokage called the secretary and told her to cancel all appointment for the next two hours. He then instructed all the hidden Anbu to leave and placed a privacy jutsu on the room. Naruto was startled by all of this but didn't say anything because his gut feeling told him that he was going to get some really important information and its best to sit tight and listen.

"First of all Naruto you are not the Kyubi you are its container and those who say otherwise are ignorant fools. If you were the Kyubi, the village would already be destroyed why wait twelve years when he could do it right now, don't you think that is a bit stupid?"

Naruto gave a light chuckle "Hehehe, yeah it is kinda stupid."

"But why me jiji?" the boy asked. It was the obvious question to ask.

Sarutobi saw that this was the moment. He would take the gamble and tell Naruto the truth.

"It was you because your father would allow no one else to take such a burden." Sarutobi said. The news shocked Naruto who burst out.

"All this time you knew and you told me they died in the attack nothing more." Naruto said in a loud voice.

Before the boy could continue his rant Sarutoubi replied. "You were too young then, too immature and both your father and mother had many enemies both inside and outside of Konoha."

This served to humble Naruto because he knew the words were true.

Sarutoubi continued. "I believe that you are ready to know the truth."

"The truth?" Naruto asked clearly confused.

"Yes Naruto. Your father is the Yondaime Hokage, Konoha's Yellow flash."

Shock was only expression that was evident on Naruto's face. "The..the Yondaime is my father?" The boy didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Yes Naruto and your mother's name was Uzumaki Kushina formerly of Whirlpool country. You were given your mother's name to protect you from all of your father's enemies. Only your father and mother truly knew what took place during the Kyubi attack. They saved us all. Even I was powerless against the beast" The Sandaime confessed.

The Sandaime's words totally surprised Naruto because he thought, as a normal child in the village, that the Hokage was almost invincible and his naivety was evident by his next statement.

"But jiji, you are the Hokage. You are supposed to be invincible."

Sandaime chuckled at the child's naivety.

"No Naruto, the Hokage is certainly not invincible. Otherwise the Yondaime would be here today after he defeated the Kyubi and I would be in retirement."

"I was also totally powerless as him and your mother gave their lives for all of us. I would've willingly given my life in exchange for their lives. He was a great Hokage, everyone one loved him both shinobi and civilian alike. His sensei was my student Jiraiya. Your father was kind, extremely dependable, showed no mercy to Konoha's enemies and above all, he loved the village as if it was his whole family—just as a true Hokage."

"Your mom and dad fought together against the Kyubi. She helped restrain the beast with her powers and he used a forbidden jutsu to seal the Kyubi within you. However, as the sealing was about to be complete, something happened and the Kyubi got loose and tried to kill you—your parents threw themselves in front of the Kyubi's claws to stop it from killing you."

"So the Kyubi killed my parents?" the boy said as anger flashed in his eyes.

"Yes! Naruto, I saw it with my very own two eyes."

As Sarutobi's words became more somber, Naruto began to understand the gravity of the information that he was receiving.

"Jiji, in the battle against Mizuki, I heard two voices—one from a man and the other from a woman, and they told me that they loved me. Were they the voices of my dad and mom?" Naruto asked, totally surprising Sarutobi.

"I don't doubt that they were Naruto." The old Hokage said.

"Love is a bond that is not easily broken, not even by death. Your parents were extremely happy when they found out that they would be having a new member to their family and it pained them to have to leave you all alone in a village that would most likely hate you for something that was not your fault."

Sarutobi knelt down before the young boy and placed his hands on the boy's heart. "They live on inside of you, in your heart, as you carry on their spirit."

"I could not always intervene because my duties as Hokage made it very difficult. I put ANBU squads to look after you, but was limited in the number I could spare. I am sorry Naruto—I failed you."  
"No Jiji, you did the best you can."

"Naruto, I know you wish to be Hokage, but being Hokage is a tough and lonely job. You will never know how difficult it was for your father to do what he did. That was no small sacrifice, for the sealing jutsu he used has damned him to eternal torment and battle with no hope of the peace and rest he so richly deserved for his sacrifice!"

Sandaime's words were filled with a sadness that Naruto had never seen before and for some reason the Sandaime's statement got stuck in his mind.

"I understand jiji." the boy replied solemly as the Sandaime spoke his solemn words.

"I am sorry Naruto to have burdened you with this information, but I believe that you will be better off receiving this information sooner rather than later."

"Thanks jiji. I understand now why you did what you did. I probably would've made a big scene out of the whole situation. It would've caused so much trouble."

The Hokage nodded and then asked the boy. "After all that you have heard, do you still want to become Hokage?"

"Of course I do jiji."

"Then come with me" the Sandaime said as he went to the roof of the Hokage tower where he could see the entire village.

"Naruto…being Hokage is a tough and lonely job. Many times you will have send those closest to you on missions where the chances of success are slim and the chances of death are almost certain. You cannot avoid this!"

The Hokage turned to the boy and said. "As Hokage you cannot avoid death, even the death of those close to you—it is the life live we live as shinobi."

"Iruka died right before your eyes and your parents died before mine. But there is a lesson to be learnt from death."

"Really?" the boy asked curiously.

"Yes Naruto. Death teaches us how important life is. As the Hokage, you must honor those who have died by continuing to live a full life…by not letting their lives be lost in vain."

"Both Iruka and your parents died so you as well as others may continue to have life. As the Hokage, I cannot forever mourn their deaths because there is a village to protect."

"As Hokage, the people of the leaf are each part of my body. They people believe in me and believe in them. I protect those who believe in me and love the village and I am responsible for raising the one who I can entrust the village to." Sandaime said to boy in front of him just as he was told by his mentors when he was about the same age.

"If you truly want to become Hokage, your desires must become second to those the village, you have to see each and every villager as a part of you because we are a family of shinobi. The ninja of this village may be of different clans or heritages but we are all one family—our survival depends on each of us doing the best we can on missions and battle."

"Do you understand what it means to be Hokage?"

"I think I do jiji." the boy said somberly.

"Good because if you do not understand, I will not allow you to become Hokage. I will not allow you to lead this village!" the Sandaime said in a very serious and direct tone.

Naruto stood there with shock on his face, but shock soon turned to realization. The Hokage's message was crystal clear! He had to move forward. There were still a village to protect; he still had his duties to perform.

"You will return to the academy to receive your team assignment in one week. It's time to go Naruto, I have duties to attend to" Sandaime said.

"Yes! Hokage-sama!" the boy said while bowing to his leader. Naruto understood completely the message the Sandaime was trying to convey to him and he responded accordingly and left the office.

"_I hope my gamble pays off."_ Sarutobi thought to himself as he stood in his office alone.

**Two days later…**

Iruka's funeral took place. There was a large gathering of shinobi and civilians who came to honor the academy instructor. Iruka was well a known and liked person in the village—his kind nature and cheerful attitude.

Naruto stood alone at the funeral, none of the academy students wanted to stand next to him. They didn't know the truth of what happened the night that led to their sensei's death. In their ignorance, they simply placed all the blame on Naruto.

One by one each of the students placed a single white rose on the grave of their beloved sensei. Naruto was the last to place his rose on his sensei's grave—he was the only person at his sensei's grave.

"Iruka sensei, I promise I will do better. I will become strong. I will protect the village as you have protected me. I will become the greatest Hokage that the village and elemental nations have ever seen. Your death will not be in vain."

"Thank you Iruka sensei for acknowledging me and believing in me."

With a deep bow of gratitude Naruto turned and walked off—his new destiny was awaiting.

XXX

That's it for chapter two. Please read and review.


	3. Chapter 3: Team Seven

Hey guys and gals! Just as with Tender hands, those two stats courses and my research project took up all of my time last semester . Anyways, happy new year to everyone. I hope it will be blessed with great things for all of you :).

The chapters for this story may come a little faster than Tenderhands because they are almost one-half the length of a chapter of Tenderhands and so, these chapter are easier to write from a word count point of view.

Sorry for the long delay. I hope you all enjoy the chapter.

…

**Konoha Shinobi**

During the week before the genin teams were to be assigned, Naruto took a lot of time to think about his life, all that happened and all that he learned from the Sandaime. He spent a lot of time reading about his father, the Yondaime, and he spoke to Sarutobi to get any information about his mother. Naruto spent a lot of time in the Konoha library trying to find any information about the Uzumaki clan. He found out about his clan's amazing chakra, longevity and affinity for sealing techniques. He didn't get any information about his father's clan, but he did find a lot of information about Jiraiya of the Sanin, his father's sensei. Naruto knew that if he could get the Sanin to take him under his wing then he would get a lot of information about his family and great training as well. He knew that if he was to keep his promise to Iruka and repay his dead sensei's faith in him, he needed to get serious about being a ninja. Thus he also read a lot about Konoha's history and the village itself, a lot more than he ever did when he still a notorious trouble maker.

…

A week later, the class was filled with all the successful candidates from the genin exam. Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino and Hyuga Hinata, Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, Amakichi Chouji, Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura were all there. This was a very promising crop of graduates because there were many clan heirs in this particular group. However, there was a solemn atmosphere; their beloved sensei's death was still very fresh in all of the young students' minds.

Every step that Naruto took as he approached the academy grounds his heart became heavier. As he got closer to his destination images of past interaction with Iruka flooded his mind.

To his left he saw the tree that he almost skewered his dead sensei with kunai and shuriken during target practice earlier that year.

To his right he saw the window that he, Kiba, Shikamaru and Chouji used to escape through. He saw an image of himself and the others scurrying through the window with their sensei not too far behind screaming at them to come back to class.

Directly in front of him was the tree with the swing that he used to sit on looking on at all the other kids as their parents came to pick them up from school. It was also the swing where Iruka would usually come and pick him up for a treat of ramen.

As the boy neared the doorway of the classroom, he could hear the voices of a few students. It was totally different than how it used to be, filled with uproar and laughter and the screams of their sensei.

As he reached for the door knob, his hands felt as if they were made of lead. When his hand touched the knob it began to tremble; he was about to let it go and run away, but he couldn't. He had a promise to fulfill to his dead sensei and the only way to fulfill that promise was to go forward.

An audible click, told him that the door was open and that there would be no Iruka inside. No Iruka to scold him, to waking him up, or chase him as he tried to escape class. He opened the door and stepped into the room, his eyes instinctively searched for his sensei—hoping, praying, that somehow…in some way… it all a stupid prank.

Oh what he would give if this was all a ruse!

But it wasn't a ruse…Iruka was dead, and the tense cold glares he was receiving was testament to that.

"Wait…isn't that Naruto?" Kiba asked.

"What the hell is he doing here? The stupid bastard caused the death of our sensei and has the balls to show up in this classroom!" the angry Inuzuka said.

"Hey bastard, get out of here before I force you to!" Kiba demanded angrily.

Naruto didn't respond to the Inuzuka, he simply continued to walk across the classroom.

"Didn't you hear what Kiba said you loser?" Ino said. "You killed our sensei! You don't belong here! Get out!" the Yamanaka said.

Once again, Naruto didn't respond to the angry words directed towards him.

"_He's definitely different. He's even worse off than us!"_ Shikamaru thought as the very perceptive yet lazy genin.

"Baka!" Sakura yelled out and tossed a text book at the blonde boy hitting him square on the head almost knocking him over.

"The stupid bastard has gone dumb!" Kiba said while getting up from his seat. He approached Naruto and held him at the collar and started to jostle the uncaring blonde.

Naruto made no move to defend himself in any way from the Inuzuka. He simply stared at the Inuzuka.

"_This is going to be troublesome!" _ Shikamaru thought.

"Kiba, Sakura, Ino please leave Naruto alone!"

"What Shikamaru! You're defending the idiot who got our sensei killed?" Kiba asked angrily.

"Look at him Kiba! He already feels bad, even worse than us. Please just leave him alone." Shikamaru said.

"You killed our sensei, you stupid fool!" Kiba said before he hit Naruto a punch square in the face that sent him flying into one of the desks.

"You should say thank you to Shikamaru for saving your ass from a beating!"

Wordlessly, Naruto simply got to his feet, and wiped the blood off of his face and took a seat in a corner to the back of the class.

Hinata looked on but was too afraid to say or do anything. The Hyuga heiress had a huge crush on the blonde boy, and she the only person who did not immediately believe that Iruka's death was Naruto's fault. She longed to just hold the boy in her harms to comfort him and tell him that she was there for him and that everything would be okay. In the end, as always, her shyness completely overwhelmed her affections for the boy.

Not too long after Naruto took his seat, the new chunin instructor entered the class.

"Hello class my name Yashi, so you all can call me Yashi –sensei. I won't have you as a class. I am simply here to call out your team assignments. Understood?"

"Yes, Yashi-sensei" the class responded minus a few individuals.

"Good. Team 8 will consist of Aburame Shino, Inuzuka Kiba and Hyuga Hinata. Your jonin instructor will be Yuhi Kurenai."

"Team 10 will be Yamanaka Ino, Akimichi Chouji and Nara Shikamaru your jonin instructor will be Sarutobi Asuma."

Ino groaned for having been placed on the same team as the lazy bum and the eat-a-holic. "Oh kami!"

The Nara sighed "_troublesome!"_

With the announcement of the first two teams Sakura immediately knew she was going to be with her precious Sasuke-kun and jumped in victory. However, she wanted nothing to do with Naruto. Sasuke would lead their team to glory! She and Sasuke would make the perfect team and Naruto would just be along for the ride.

"Umm sensei I have a question" Sakura said shyly.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Umm can I change one of my teammates? I don't want to be teamed up with Naruto."

"No you can't switch teammates. It is customary for the dead-last to be paired with the top of the class. Those are the rules set by the Hokage. You are free to take the issue up with him if you so wish." The new chunin instructor said bluntly.

"No…no need Yashi-sensei" the girl said while sending an angry glare towards Naruto at the back of the class. The boy just looked at her with an impassive face.

One-by-one, the jonin instructors came to pick up their students, until team seven was left alone. Naruto was the back of the class all alone silently contemplating his future and how he was going to accomplish his goals, while Sakura was in full blown fan-girl mode trying to get a date with Sasuke. Three hours later their jonin sensei finally came. He was tall, slim, had silver hair, with a mask over his face and hitate over his eye—he was Konoha's top jonin Hatake Kakashi.

"Sensei you're late!" Sakura screamed out.

Kakashi simply looked at the three genin in front of him and said. "My first impression of you all is that I don't like you!" to the shock of both Sasuke and Sakura. "Meet me on the roof in 5 minutes." The cryptic jonin said and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

…

Five minutes later as team seven gathered for the first time the Kakashi started off the conversation. "I want to know your likes, dislikes and future goals. You go first pinky." He ordered.

"Umm…Kakashi sensei, shouldn't you go first seeing that you're the jonin and everything?" the girl asked.

Kakashi looked at the pink haired fan-girl and said ok with an eye-smile. "Okay. My name is Hatake Kakashi. My likes and dislikes are none of your concerns and my goals for the future well…that's none of your concern as well and hobbies…hmm." the cryptic jonin said.

Looks of annoyance could be seen on the faces of Sakura and Sasuke and Naruto didn't seem to care.

"_Hmm! He still seems deeply affected by Iruka's death. I will have to speak to him about it_." Kakashi said.

"Your turn Uchiha" Kakashi said.

"The name's Uchiha Sasuke I like very little and there I much I dislike. My goal is to kill a certain man and to revive my clan!"

"_As expected of the Uchiha" _thought the jonin.

"Your turn blondie" he said pointing

"My name's Uzumaki Naruto. My likes and dislikes are not you concern."

"_Cheeky bastard!"_ Sasuke thought.

"_How dare he!"_ Sakura thought.

"_Interesting!" _Kakashi thought.

"Like the Uchiha I too, am on a quest for vengeance." At this everyone stood still and looked at the blonde.

His voice became cold and hard "I will kill the one who took my family away from me. I will not rest and I will not stop until my family is avenged and just like the Uchiha I wish to revive my clan as well. I will become the Hokage of Konoha." The boy said matter-of-factly.

When Naruto learnt that the Kyubi was responsible for the death of his family, he was filled with rage and strong desire for vengeance. His desire for vengeance on the Kyubi was made even more intense knowing that the beast was stuck in his gut and was the cause of the misery of his life.

After Naruto's speech everyone stood still and not a word was made. Sakura was shocked into silence by Naruto's words.

Kakashi was definitely surprised _"I definitely need to speak to Hokage-sama about this!"_

Sasuke looked and the blonde with wide eyes. "_He too knows my pain. He too wishes to right the wrongs done to my family. He is just like me—an avenger! Maybe team seven wouldn't be so bad after all?"_ the young Uchiha thought.

Broken out of his stupor Kakashi began to speak. "Ok then time's up for introductions. Meet me at training ground seven at 8am tomorrow and for your survival training."

"What screamed Sakura, we already did that already in the academy!"

"This is different Sakura. In this training, I will be your opponent." the jonin replied. "Don't eat anything or might throw up!" he finished then disappeared into thin air.

Naruto got up and started to walk off. Sakura began to babble about how great it was to be on team seven with Sasuke.

"Hey Naruto baka, you better not slow Sasuke-kun down and makes us all fail tomorrow." Naruto simply continued to walk back to his apartment—totally ignoring the girl.

**With Sasuke…**

Ever since the murder of his clan Sasuke never knew anyone who truly understood his loneliness and pain, but now with the dobe's shocking revelation everything turned inside out for the young Uchiha. They shared strikingly similar goals, but for some reason his blonde teammate became more sinister and blood thirsty. For Sasuke, he now had a kindred spirit that was travelling the same road as he was—the road of vengeance! However, their aims were also very different. For Sasuke revenge and the revival of his clan were all that mattered, but after those two were accomplished then what? The blonde on the other hand, had a third goal something else than the revival of his clan and vengeance, he had something more to live for.

"_Maybe I am missing something?"_ the young Uchiha said to himself.

**With Kakashi…**

"_What a team I have got, I don't know what to think about them!" _ The jonin thought to himself.

"_The Uchiha and Haruno girl were expected to be as they are, but Naruto was a complete surprise and what's more was the boy's declaration of avenging his family. Does he know that the Yondaime is his father? Is he referring to the Kyubi?"_

"_I'll have to talk to the Hokage after their genin exam"_

…

The next day the three genin stood under the shade of a tree waiting for their sensei to arrive. Naruto was reading a book about ninjutsu.

Two hours after the appointed time Kakashi "Good morning guys!" Kakashi said with an eye smile.

"You're late!" Sakura shouted at her sensei.

Totally ignoring the girl's tirade Kakashi revealed two bells attached to a string as well as an alarm clock.

"Here are two bells. Your task is to get these two bells from me before the alarm goes off. You only have to get one bell, and the person who fails to get a bell will be sent back to the academy. Use all tools at your disposal and come with intent to kill otherwise you will never get a bell." He said to his students.

"_This test is about team work!" _Naruto thought.

At the jonin's proclamation Sasuke's eyes hardened with determination while Sakura's widened with fear.

"But you'll be in danger Kakashi sensei!" Sakura said.

"I'm a jonin for a reason Sakura" he responded dryly.

"Okay, the test begins now!"

In an instant all three genin disappeared.

…

Naruto was trying to figure out a way of getting his teammates to cooperate with him to get the bells. The test was obviously about team work, but he wasn't sure the fact was noticed by his teammates. He knew that it would be difficult to get them to work with him. Sasuke wasn't a team player and Sakura would just follow Sasuke around.

"_I have to at least try and get them to work with me to try and get the bells." _the boy thought.

"Kage bunshin no jutsu!" the boy said as twenty clones appeared before him.

"Two of you go find Sasuke and Sakura and the rest keep Kakashi-sensei busy as long as possible." the boy commanded.

…

"Hmm! They're well hidden, except for the Uzumaki?!" Kakashi said as he was faced down by twenty clones.

"Interesting, you can use shadow clones." the jonin said to the onrushing clones.

"Yes, and I am coming to kick your ass!" the clones said while launching kunai at their sensei.

Kakashi easily evaded the projectiles and started to disable the clones one by one.

"Huh!?" Naruto felt a sensation when a clone disappeared. He saw that he was down to five clones.

"What!? How can I know that I was down to five clones?" the boy thought to himself.

"_No time to think about this I need to send out more clones!" _

"Kage bunshin no jutsu!" he repeated yet again but this time he created one hundred clones.

As Kakashi was finishing up the remaining clones he was attacked by another mass of clones.

"_Hmm! He's definitely stalling for time and he's probably figured out the secret of the shadow clones as well! Very interesting indeed!" _Kakashi thought as he fought off the other waves of clones.

…

Sakura was not too far away looking on at the fight between Kakashi and Naruto's clones. _"Wow, how is Naruto able to make so many clones?" _the girl thought as waves and waves of clones descended upon the jonin.

"Hey Sakura" the girl heard behind her that made her give a yelp.

"Quiet or you'll alert Kakashi sensei!" the clone muttered.

"Naruto sent me here to get you so we can work together in getting those bells from Kakashi sensei"

"No way, I am not working with you, the dead last. I only work with Sasuke-kun!"

The clone simply shook its head in exasperation and dispelled itself.

…

Sasuke was also looking on at the waves of clones flooding Kakashi sensei and began to feel jealous. _"How can the dead-last make so many clones? How is he doing it?"_

However, he was brought out of his musings by a familiar voice.

"Hey Sasuke, let's team up and get the bells from Kakashi-sensei" the clone asked.

"Why should I? You seem to be doing the job by yourself without our help" the boy responded.

"No they are just distracting him to bide time for us to get together and work as team to get the bells"

"I don't work on teams, I work alone" was all the Uchiha had to say.

"Fine!" the clone said and dispersed itself.

…

"_As expected they won't work with me to get the bells." _

Not too long after a shrill cry could be heard from the bushes. It was Sakura, and she was the first victim. A short while later Sasuke engaged the jonin in a taijutsu battle and came close to getting a bell. He did much better than the Haruno girl but still, he failed also.

"And then there was one." Kakashi said after capturing Sasuke.

Then he heard. "Tajuu Kage bunshin no jutsu!" and before Kakashi knew it, the field was full of clones.

"Let's go get those bells!" Naruto said to his clones.

"Yeah! Let's go!" a clone said as the mass of clones proceeded to dog piled the lone jonin.

"Sigh! This is going to take a while" Kakashi said as the clones descended upon him.

While the jonin was busy a few of Naruto's clones went to save Sasuke and Sakura from their respective predicaments, much to their chagrin.

During the middle of the mass clone attack the bell rang signaling the end of the test. The clones immediately stopped attacking their opponent.

"All right times up!" Kakashi said. "Disperse your clones Naruto and come out of hiding" the jonin commanded.

The three genin stood before their sensei waiting for the verdict.

"You all failed miserably!" he commented.

"I don't think so Kakashi sensei." Naruto commented.

"What do you mean?"

The boy put his hand in his pockets and pulled out the two bells.

"What, when, how?" Sakura and Sasuke asked in shock

"When I dog piled him with clones, I managed to steal the bells from him during the commotion. "My pranking skills are second to none" the boy declared confidently.

"You defeated Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura said in awe.

"No Sakura. There's no way a couple of hundred unskilled clones can ever hope to take out the top jonin of Konoha. If Kakashi-sensei was serious we would be dead before the exercise even began!"

"What!" Sasuke asked incredulously.

Naruto turned to Sasuke with a look on his face that showed the boy's ire at his teammate. "Sasuke, you really expect three fresh out of the academy genin to defeat the top jonin of Konoha after being a team for almost four hours?"

"Really?" the boy asked in an almost disbelieving tone.

Sasuke had no retort for the boy's logic although it was a blow to his pride.

"There is a reason the village has the standard three man team and that is teamwork! Teammates help cover each other's backs and make the success rate of missions higher. This exam was all about teamwork. The group working together towards a common goal, the two bells were meant to distract us from the true aim of the test. It was meant to separate us and it did its job really well" the boy said.

"_He totally understood the aim of the test!" _Kakashi said.

"So that's why you sent out the first two sets of clones. They were meant to bide time so that you can get the others to work as a team with you to get the bells right?" Kakashi said matter-of-factly.

"Yes, I tried to get them to work with me but Sakura was only interested in working with Sasuke and Sasuke was intent on working by himself. So when they refused my invitation I decided to try and get the bells by myself." The boy said.

"Okay well it seems that Sasuke and Sakura will have to head back to the academy and I'll have to find a team for Naruto since he passed the test."

"What! Go back to the academy! I can't go back to the academy, I must move forward!" Sasuke said in an angry tone.

"I have to get my vengeance!"

"What you want doesn't matter! I am the jonin and what I say goes!" Kakashi said in tone that broke no argument.

"But…but" was all Sakura could say, but before she or Sasuke could say anything two bells landed at their feet.

"That won't be necessary Kakashi-sensei" Naruto responded as threw the bells to the feet of his would be teammates.

"Konoha shinobi protect always their own. We rely on team work because there is strength in numbers and each can member of a team can help cover the other's weakness."

"I don't like you all as much as you all don't like me. You dislike me because I was the cause of our sensei's death which is true and I rightly deserve all the blame. My stupidity caused him to die and that's why I won't make stupid mistakes anymore!"

Turning to Sasuke he continued.

"Sasuke, you believe that you are better than everyone and we're a burden to you. A day will come when you will have to choose between protecting the village and your own ambition and I am sure you will choose your ambition over the village and stab us in the back!" Naruto said bluntly.

He then turned to Sakura.

"You fawn over Sasuke's every word, but aren't much more than a really smart shinobi. Smarts alone won't cut it in battle. One day you'll meet someone who is smarter and stronger than you and then you will die!"

"You're being too candid Naruto!" Kakashi admonished.

"No I don't think so Kakashi-sensei. I just speaking my mind"

"I may not like you both much, but even if it was for a very short time we were teammates and shinobi of Konoha will take care of their own—even at the cost of his or her life. So, I made the sacrifice so you two can move on, you both might probably be better off without me on your team." Naruto said the quite crowd and then he began to walk off.

"I'm leaving now Kakashi-sensei. I will definitely pass the genin exam next year!" the boy said with conviction.

"_He fully understands what it means to be a shinobi of Konoha! Only if the other two will get it as well!" _Kakashi thought to himself.

Sasuke looked at the two bells before him and clenched his fists in anger. _"Since when did the dobe get smart and serious?_ _Talking of vengeance and he even killed a chunin! Right now he's ahead of me—the dobe is ahead of me!" _Sasuke thought to himself.

"Wait! Where are you going? You just can't walk out on us and play hero!" Sasuke said.

"What about your dream Sasuke? You can't fulfill that dream as a genin and what about 'Mister I work alone!'" Naruto replied, taking a jibe at the Uchiha for snubbing his request to team up earlier.

"Neither can you!" Sasuke quickly retorted.

"I don't care. Even if I remain a genin forever that's not going to stop me from achieving my goals" the boy said as he continued to walk off.

"I am going back too then!" Sasuke said. "One more year isn't going to stop my training!"

"Hey you all aren't going to leave me behind!" Sakura said unwilling to be left behind.

"Sorry Kakashi-sensei. It seems that you won't have a genin team this year again." The girl said running off to meet her two teammates.

"_They actually pulled together! Naruto pulled them together!"_

"Who said I didn't have a genin team this year?" Kakashi said in somewhat amused tone.

"Huh!" The three genin said in unison.

"You all finally got it, or I should say Sasuke and Sakura finally got it…at least a little bit"

"What?" the two genin said.

"Naruto is absolutely right. Konoha shinobi rely on teamwork to survive. The time for the individual skills of shinobi being more important than teamwork is long gone. However, it doesn't mean that individual skill isn't important, it just means that you must be able to use your individual skills to the benefit of the team and the village."

"There is a reason why this test has a failure rate of sixty-six percent and my failure rate is, or was, one hundred percent."

The jonin's voice became somber as he continued to talk. "On this monument are engraved the names of those who fought and died to protect the village. While it may be true that those who follow the rules are trash, those who abandon their friends are worse than trash."

"My friend, whose name is also carved on this stone, taught me that"

With a more cheerful tone that jonin eye-smiled and said "Congratulations you are now officially team seven!"

"Woo hoo!" Sakura shouted.

"Humph!" was all that came out of Sasuke.

Naruto shook his head. "Didn't I say I didn't like you all?"

"You're stuck with us baka! Deal with it!" Sakura responded.

"_This is going to be very interesting"_ Kakashi thought.

…

Later that evening at the Hokage's office Kakashi stood before the Sandaime ready to ask his leader some important questions.

"Hokage-sama, I am here concerning my new team."

"Hohoho! So they did manage to pass your test?"

"Yes, the very first team for me to pass"

"So what do you want to speak to me about?" asked the Sandaime.

"Naruto" was the one word that came out of the jonin's mouth.

"Hmm what about him?"

"At our first meeting he spoke about avenging his family and reviving his clan. He's changed from the troublemaking prankster that whole village knows. He seems more focused and determined. He was the only one to figure about the true meaning of the test"

"What's going on Sandaime –sama?"

"As expected of you Kakashi-kun, you figured out what was going on"

"I told Naruto the truth about his heritage and the Kyubi"

"He knows that Minato-sensei is his father and Kushina is his mother?"

"Yes, I told him!"

"He also spoke of revenge on the one who took his family. Could he be referring to the Kyubi?"

"I would surmise so, since I told him I saw the Kyubi killed his parent with my very own eyes."

"But Sandaime-sama isn't that dangerous, what if he interferes with the seal and unleashes the Kyubi!?" Kakashi said in a worried tone.

"A very valid concern Kakashi-san, however I have already accounted for that concern. Jiraiya will be returning sometime around the chunin exams to report on Orochimaru's activities. I told him of Naruto and I have also requested that he meet with the boy. If he takes Naruto under his wing, then we wouldn't have to worry about the Kyubi" Sandaime said.

"He's a very different kid since the death of his sensei right before his eyes and he's killed the person responsible for his sensei's death. To kill and to see someone killed at such a young age will force any kid to grow up and change their view of life and death, especially for shinobi. Based on his actions on during our conversation I do not think that Naruto would do something that would endanger the village"

"Until then, take care of Naruto" The Sandaime told Kakashi.

"Yes Sandaime-sama" Kakashi responded and left.

XXX

Later that night Kakashi heard a knock on his door. It was Naruto.

"Can I talk to you Kakashi-sensei?"

"Yes Naruto, what do you have on your mind?"

"During the test, when you dispelled my shadow clones I experienced their sensation even though I was nowhere near the battle. Is there something special about shadow clones?"

"Ohh! So you did notice! I was wondering if you did!"

"Yeah I did and I thought it was weird" The boy replied.

"It' not weird, it's a side effect of the jutsu. Give me a couple minutes and I'll be out" the jonin said while he went to change.

…

About fifteen minutes later came out fully dressed.

"Let us head to one of the training grounds"

"Hai!"

Not too long later the pair was in the middle of one of Konoha's many training grounds.

"Okay, so to begin the shadow clone is no ordinary jutsu. It's a forbidden jutsu because of the huge chakra requirements. Most jonin can only make a couple before their chakra is completely wiped out. On the other hand, your unique situation makes the drawback of the Kage bunshin null and void."

"So you know about the Kyubi?"

"All jonin know about the Kyubi and you probably know by now that I was your father's pupil"

"Yeah I read about it in the books in the library"

"Okay good. The Kage bunshin is different from the regular bunshin because it creates an exact copy of the person who created it. What's more, everything the Kage bunshin experiences is transferred back to the caster when the bunshin are dispelled"

Naruto's facial expression told Kakashi that he realized the immense training potential of the Kage bunshin and he moved to warn the boy about the dangers.

"I know what you're thinking Naruto…and it's true that the Kage bunshin is an immense training tool but need to heed my two important warnings!" the jonin said in a serious tone.

"Number one, training with Kage bunshin can lead to extreme chakra exhaustion and in extreme cases death and that's why it's known as a forbidden jutsu. Two, if you use too many clones too often you run the risk of losing control and that might cause a release of the Kyubi's chakra"

"But I can still use it though and that's more than enough for me"

"Just to be safe make no more than five hundred clones during training per day"

"Okay Kakashi sensei" the boy said gratefully.

"Oh and just a bit of advice, your chakra control is very poor because of your huge chakra reserves. However, if you improve your chakra control you will dramatically increase the power and quality of your jutsu!" the jonin said.

"Can you help me with my control?"

"Of course I can, that's why I am your sensei, but that has to wait until in the morning when I'll teach everyone together"

"Okay sensei!" the boy said before he became a little muted.

Knowing what the boy wanted to ask about his father Kakashi saved the boy from an awkward moment.

"Your dad was a great man, shinobi and teacher. He was loved by the entire village and he loved the village with his whole heart. He was a kind man, but he was also a ruthless and calculating opponent that stuck fear into his enemies. And most importantly, he would be proud of the young man you turned out to be." The jonin said with an eye smile.

"Thanks Kakashi sensei" Naruto replied gratefully.

"Don't worry about it Naruto. However, it's time to head back it's late and we have missions in the morning."

"Yes sensei" the boy replied.

…

When Naruto got back to his apartment he opened a book and a small piece of paper, both of which had jutsu written on them.

"I am going to get stronger no matter what!" He said.

This was only the beginning…

….

Please share your thoughts .

Thanks,

Valexander


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